Today’s Shiller PE Suggests the Stock Market Is Overvalued By 60%!

The mean Shiller PE ratio since 1881 is 16.53, and the median is 15.92. Based on these numbers, we can estimate that a ‘fair price’ for the market is a Shiller PE of around 16. With the market at close to a Shiller PE of 26, the market is overvalued by about 60%. Now is not a historically good time to initiate a position in the S&P500.

The above are edited excerpts from an article* by Ben Reynolds (suredividend.com} entitled How Overvalued is the Market, & Does it Matter?.

The following article is presented by Lorimer Wilson, editor ofwww.munKNEE.com (Your Key to Making Money!), www.FinancialArticleSummariesToday.com (A site for sore eyes and inquisitive minds) and the FREEMarket Intelligence Report newsletter (sample here; register here) and has been edited, abridged and/or reformatted (some sub-titles and bold/italics emphases) for the sake of clarity and brevity to ensure a fast and easy read. This paragraph must be included in any article re-posting to avoid copyright infringement.

Reynolds goes on to say in further edited excerpts;

The Shiller PE Ratio Explained

The Shiller PE ratio is the current price of the S&P500 divided by average inflation adjusted earnings over the last 10 years. The Shiller PE Ratio (also known as PE10) reduces the impact of recent earnings on the price to earnings ratio.

It is based on the teachings of Benjamin Graham who advised using 10 years of earnings data to smooth out earnings increases (and decreases) resulting from fluctuations in the business cycle. The Shiller PE ratio is named after Robert Shiller, the Sterling Professor of Economics at Yale who popularized the ratio in his book Irrational Exuberance. The Shiller PE ratio removes a great deal of business cycle “noise” from the valuation calculation. The chart below shows how overvalued the market is historically.

(click to enlarge) Source: multpl.com

How Overvalued is The Market?

The mean Shiller PE ratio since 1881 is 16.53, and the median is 15.92. Based on these numbers, we can estimate that a ‘fair price’ for the market is a Shiller PE of around 16. With the market at close to a Shiller PE of 26, the market is overvalued by about 60%. Now is not a historically good time to initiate a position in the S&P500. Of course, investors need not invest in the entire market.

There are two important questions that dictate whether investing in any stock is a good idea with the market historically overvalued:

How long will the market be overvalued?

Are there individual stocks that aren’t overvalued?

How Long will the Market be Overvalued?

Short answer, I have no idea. The market has stayed at a Shiller PE of over 25 for much of the late 1990s and 2000s. Overvaluation does not imply an immediate correction. When you don’t invest in the market, you are incurring an opportunity cost; the cost of forgoing an investment. If the market is overvalued by 60%, grows at 10%, and doesn’t correct for 7 years, you are better off investing in the overvalued market than holding cash.

Seth Klarman of the $27 billion hedge fund Baupost Group was holding about 50% of his portfolio in cash at the end of 2013. He has gone on record stating that we are in an asset bubble. A 50% cash position is a very strong signal that Seth Klarman has a high conviction the market is overpriced and will soon correct.

It is unlikely the market will remain overvalued for another decade. Historically low interest rates are creating additional demand for risky assets. The stock market benefits greatly from low interest rates. If/when interest rates rise, stocks will become less attractive investments compared to bonds and short-term treasuries.

Editor’s Note: The author’s views and conclusions in the above article are unaltered and no personal comments have been included to maintain the integrity of the original post. Furthermore, the views, conclusions and any recommendations offered in this article are not to be construed as an endorsement of such by the editor.

*http://www.suredividend.com/how-overvalued-is-the-market-does-it-matter/ (Everything Sure Dividend does is under the uncopyright license – you can copy, spread, and revise the information on Sure Dividend in any way you see fit.)

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